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The reality about high volume training (and why it leads to overtraining)
Everyone always said that Arnold was always overtraining, because he trained 2 hours a day 6 days a week, banging 40+ sets for each muscle, and yet he always trained to failure on every set he did.
But in the reality? Science shows that more sets = more growth! This studies show that 52 sets in a week works best for muscle growth, so… with this study, can we confirm that Arnold didn’t actually overtrain? and for this whole time, Arnold was actually doing the best method to build his muscle?
For me personally, the answer is Yes. But, let’s not be bias here, let’s look at the other side of the fence.
For many people, including Mike Mentzer said that 1 set is all you need, and 20+ sets will lead to overtraining. This statement by Mike is very true to me and so many people. When I just got started, I always prefer higher sets, and I bring all the sets to failure, and the result? Zero. I can’t progressively overload (lift heavier weight), and my muscles just got fatiqued all the time, it seems like I was overtraining with higher volume and sets.
It may be confusing… before I said I agreed that Arnold didn’t actually overtrain, but at the same time I said that high volume training leads to overtraining?
People don’t OVERTRAIN, they UNDERRECOVER.
Most people believe they’re overtraining, but in the reality? They are under-recover. They only sleep for 5 hours. don’t have a structure sleep schedule. scroll before they sleep. eat bad diet. eat whatever they wanted. and the worse? They don’t have a structured program.
Any type of training you do, if you follow that kind of attitued, you’ll not grow! It’s that simple. If you train hard, you must recover harder. So before self diagnose yourself with ‘overtraining’ you must check youself whether you’re under recover or not.
But even people who don’t underrecover still fail with high volume. Why? Because volume is like a tool. If you don’t know how to use it, it will break you instead of build you. Arnold knew how to use it. He split his body smartly. He focused each session. He had insane discipline with recovery, sleep, food, and mindset. That’s why he could grow on that program, while many people today burn out on half his volume.
How to earn higher volume
Add 1 sets every month, and if that fits your schedule, and you can progressive overload, then you good to go. Don’t jump from 10 sets to 40 sets in one week. Your body is not ready. You must build tolerance like you build strength. Little by little. Step by step.
Think of volume like money. If you spend more than you earn, you go broke. But if you slowly increase your income, then you can spend more and still grow. Same with training. More sets is more stress. If you don’t recover, you go broke. If you recover well, you get stronger and bigger.
So in the end, was Arnold overtraining? For him, no. For the average person with bad sleep, bad diet, no structure, yes. The truth is not about the number of sets, but about recovery and progression.
The lesson here? Don’t blindly copy Arnold. Don’t blindly copy Mentzer. Start with what you can recover from, then slowly increase. If you’re growing, keep going. If you’re always tired and weak, cut back.
Training is personal. Arnold proved high volume works. Mentzer proved low volume works. The real secret? Find the volume that YOU can recover from, and stick with it.
So in the end, was Arnold overtraining? For him, no. For the average person with bad sleep, bad diet, no structure, yes. The truth is not about the number of sets, but about recovery and progression.
The lesson here? Don’t blindly copy Arnold. Don’t blindly copy Mentzer. Start with what you can recover from, then slowly increase. If you’re growing, keep going. If you’re always tired and weak, cut back.
Training is personal. Arnold proved high volume works. Mentzer proved low volume works. The real secret? Find the volume that YOU can recover from, and stick with it.
And remember what Arnold always said: “You can’t climb the ladder of success with your hands in your pockets.”
Consistency beats everything. Consistency beats genetics. Consistency beats excuses. If you want to remind yourself to stay consistent every single day, that’s why I created my Arnold poster. Hang it on your wall. Look at it before you train. Let it remind you to push harder, to recover smarter, and to stay locked in on your goals.
👉 Grab yours today and keep Arnold’s words in front of you, so you never skip a workout again.
